Today we’d like to introduce you to Camryn Suzanne
Camryn, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
To start from the very beginning, fun fact when my mom was pregnant with me. With one very specific ultrasound my mom told me the doctors said, “She’s a dancer.” because I wouldn’t stay still in her tummy. It’s as if my destiny was partially chosen for me that day. This manifested into real life. Ironically, I would start dancing at the age of three. You might look at this and say, “We’re not supposed to be discussing a dancer today”, but my story starts there. It ignited my love for connecting with audiences, putting myself out there, and making my presence known. I was never, ever forced to do anything in my life & dancing was no different.
Since I was three, everything that I have led myself into has been based on sheer intuition, my heart, letting my passion drive me. And so that culminated into this world of dancing that I became engulfed in.
My talent has taken me across the country in my teen years. I’ve met so many eclectic creatives and artists that were so multifaceted. And one thing that artists often do is we box ourselves in.
For the longest, I convinced myself that dance was my only identity. I realized throughout my years of dancing that I had other creative sides within. One of those that I realized very early on was my confidence to be in front of people and to speak, to craft my thoughts. I was a talker to no end, so that helped tremendously. I discovered making YouTube videos where I could morph my passions together and share them. I started my first channel at 12, where I would do the choppy editing on my little Dell laptop (by no surprise it was a dance tutorial channel). I was morphing those two passions, but I hid behind the dancing. However, the older I got, the more I realized I had a lot to say.
What often couples with dancing? Music. I have these conversations with my family and friends. So, this naturally culminated into music video & album reactions. As my audience slowly grew, a lot of people started asking me, “What is your opinion on this artist?” “What’s your opinion on this award show?”
Naturally, I started to do more music commentary videos & social commentary videos that were more so centered around artists. Art is interconnected with the world deeper than just the music itself. There are social implications. I started to analyze or more critically think about how we listen to and appreciate music as consumers.
There is a level of connection that I’ve always had to music that was so intertwined with my dancing & I fought to find the relationship between these crafts.That’s what led me to my channel present day.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Overall, it hasn’t been. I explained how I’ve had multiple creative passions. Being creative is often not immediately fruitful and it’s very hard to stay motivated when people aren’t watching. It’s a labor of love. Throughout the 5 years of having this specific channel, it’s taken the span of that time to make major headway. So, there were times where I thought “I’m not cut out for this.” There was a struggle to stay consistent and believe in myself. And I know that sounds cliché, but what do you do when you have a video that you worked so hard on, researched, edited for hours on end and you’re only getting 50 views? It began to feel like a waste despite knowing my content was meaningful and well thought out. As creators, we often want instant gratification. We wrap our worth into the views, the positive comments carry us and the negative comments can punch you down. The silence however, could make you feel like no one was there. And for years, I felt invisible despite all of the hard work and late nights. I was looking at all these creators around me blowing up. I felt like what am I doing wrong?
But when you know your passion and your purpose, there’s a gut feeling inside of you that knows it’s going to work out some way or another. So, I had to listen to that voice. I had to trust my hard work and trust my talent. It was hard, embarrassing at times even. Promoting something that hasn’t actualized yet.
At this stage where I am now, putting yourself and your content out there for the world to consume can be daunting at times. The positive and negative comments. Those who criticize everything you do. People commenting mean things when they don’t know who you are. It’s a challenge but I know I’m built for it. Instant gratification and overnight success was not and is not the answer in my case. There’s a level of hustle and tenacity that I have learned and has become innate. You can’t trade that for anything.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I have a pop culture commentary channel on YouTube with a niche focus in Pop and R&B music commentary. I share my honest & researched thoughts on a given topic that relates to music, the industry, artists, or the culture. I like to analyze music, musicians, their art and different facets of the music making process from the videos, to the dancing, to the origins of genres, to us as consumers. I strive to create a nuanced conversation. Often in the age of the Internet, a lot of people lack the desire to think about a subject from multiple POV’s. Everything becomes so black and white. I specialize in trying to present different sides of arguments, attempting to view the broad point vs. leaning into pure judgment. I think that’s what’s missing a lot from pop culture commentary. A lot of it is sheer click bait and not researched at all. Some of it is not based on us as consumers looking at ourselves in the mirror. What do we want?
This is my goal. I’m not perfect, but I try to steer away from pure gossip on these artists.
I take a hot topic that has been going on or being discussed amongst music fans and I attempt to link it back to a bigger picture, a bigger moment, and a bigger lesson.
I’ve also gotten a slew of musicians and artists messaging me saying “We really appreciate the nuance that your videos have.” “’Im really paying attention to what you’re saying.” I’m very proud that I can provide insight and encouragement for artists as a passionate music listener myself. Having the wherewithal to appreciate the art & get back to talking about the different aspects of it versus the sensationalized gossip of it all. Of course that’s going to exist because it’s how the pop culture industry turns its wheels. However, the more we critically think, or try to see other sides of perspectives, we can really start to facilitate better art that sparks conversations. I really enjoy that part of what I bring to the conversation, trying to think of topics that people aren’t necessarily talking about.
Lastly, my love for video editing sets my content apart as well. I spend a lot of time and attention making my content very engaging from a visual standpoint. Whether that’s with figures, infographics, making interactive games, news segments. I edit all of my videos and intros by myself. So, I love making it fun and immersive for my viewers.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I’ve thought about this after graduating college in 2021, especially as a creative. It’s very uncertain. You wonder about the investment that you made and will it pay off. I’ve worked some jobs where I was more comfortable with the 9-5 hustle. Telling myself, I should do something that’s more palatable to society standards. Recently, I’ve leaned into content creation on a full-time scale. And although I wouldn’t generally consider myself much of a risk taker. This is a risk. I want to make that very clear. I’ve had the privilege to be able to follow my dreams. I’ve told myself at my age with less responsibilities to others but more to myself, I would be doing myself a disservice to not take a shot at what I love. I’m betting on myself right now and that’s scary. I work long hours, I interact with my online community and I interact with my audiences, for the love of what I do. But also I know that I have to take that risk. I have to dive in, if I want this to work.
I do believe that as a creative professional, it is just the nature of the business. I wish we were valued more for the entertainment & information we provide, as well as the comfort and escapism we provide to people. I wish that it was worth a lot more and immediately fruitful. But we live in a certain reality.
So, I think risk taking is a beautiful thing. Sometimes, high risk can mean high reward. I do also live in a space where you have to be realistic with your risks (if that’s even a thing) because having a roof over your head is important, being able to take care of your responsibilities is important. As long as you have a plan, go for it.
Pricing:
- $5 per month Patreon subscription for exclusive uncut reactions to album releases
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/camryn_suzanne/?hl=en
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CamrynSuzanne
- Other: https://www.patreon.com/camrynsuzanne/posts
Image Credits
Headshot by Aaron Lutas
